Browns notebook: What’s going on with the QBs?

In their conversations with Browns fans, the first thing most people ask is, “What’s going on with the quarterbacks?”

Head Coach Romeo Crennel will keep getting asked who will throw the first pass against Pittsburgh -- even though he’s had it up to here clarifying his position.

Without losing his cool, Crennel laughed in frustration when pressed on the issue Monday.

“I don’t understand the deal with the quarterback position,” he said. “I know it’s an important position, but I told you last week that Charlie (Frye) was going to start against Denver, and then Derek (Anderson) was going to come in.

“I’m telling you this week that Charlie is going to start, and then Derek will come in.

“Next week, I’ll tell you who the starter is going to be and who will come in after that. I’ll tell you when I know. I have an idea but I don’t know yet.”

Crennel indicated Brady Quinn will play in the second half Thursday at Chicago, according to game flow.

Meanwhile, it wouldn’t be unreasonable for Crennel to genuinely worry as much about his offensive line as about the QBs.

Left guard Eric Steinbach took the field in uniform for the first time since spraining a knee, doing only team drills. Steinbach is expected to start the opener but has been ruled out of the Chicago game.

The club has had a rash of preseason concussions. One took Isaac Sowells out of the running to beat out Seth McKinney at right guard. Another knocked right tackle Kevin Shaffer out of Saturday’s game at Denver and Monday’s practice.

Shaffer, who said Saturday he was “OK” two hours after suffering a concussion, didn’t practice Monday.

Shaffer looked like he had been roundhouse kicked by Chuck Norris after a first-half play Saturday. He was replaced then by Ryan Tucker, since the Browns were trying to win a game. With Tucker out for the first for games on a suspension, practice is being used to groom Kelly Butler for possible heavy duty.

On one practice play, Butler showed good agility in protecting for what turned out to be a screen pass. Butler ducked by design as a throw from Anderson whizzed over his back to running back Jason Wright.

Crennel said a doctor was coming in Monday night to evaluate Shaffer.

The brass says it soon must decide whether LeCharles Bentley, recovering from a patellar tendon/infection disaster, will be placed on injured reserve. The center’s chances of playing in September appear nil. Training camp has come and gone and he wasn’t on the field Monday.

“We have a chance to be better than last year if everyone is there,” Crennel said.

ROYE RETURNS

Defensive end Orpheus Roye dressed for the first time since undergoing minor knee surgery.

Roye didn’t do much, other than to run sprints with linebacker Andra Davis while the rest of the players did position drills. Davis won’t play Thursday at Chicago and is questionable for the Sept. 9 opener against the Steelers.

“How you guys doing?” he said cheerfully as he jogged past writers, on his way to a limited practice workload.

FURTHER REVIEW

Crennel said postgame study of coaches’ film were inconclusive as to whether Joe Jurevicius didn’t get both feet inbounds after a would-be touchdown pass from Brady Quinn. Crennel said he didn’t challenge the play partly because the back judge, Don Carey, didn’t hesitate to rule Jurevicius out of bounds.

Crennel didn’t reveal whether he would have challenged the ruling had it been a real game.